The Truth In Our Ties
by Saiyon
Summary: The Cullens left Forks in a hurry, and due to their suspicious behavior, the Irish Coven is wondering why. Due to their own problems, the coven then decide to send Maggie to Forks to try and figure things out, only for her to run into her mate. Maggie/Bella ending.
1. Chapter 1

_Author's Note: Well, Merry Christmas or Happy Holidays to all. Let's hope you all see this as a present instead of coal, and as for you, JimmyHall24, I promised, didn't I? Here's the delivery, hope you enjoy it, you sure have waited long enough after all. Thanks for pushing me to get this out there._

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Chapter 1

"Maggie."

The teenage vampire recognized the tone in Liam's voice, and knew that meant trouble. However, she had no idea what she had done to warrant that tone. So instead of admitting to whatever trouble she had gotten into, she feigned cluelessness. Of course, it wasn't hard to feign this time, as she really did have no idea what she could have done. As far as she knew, she had been good today.

"Don't worry, I ain't gettin' into any mischief today. I didn't even leave the house," Maggie said without so much as glancing over her shoulder, more so that her two coven mates wouldn't notice her eye roll. They were both a mix of sibling and parent to her, and they had trouble leaving her alone. Not just because Maggie enjoyed doing some more...naughty...things once in awhile, but because they were simply completely, absurdly over protective. They acted like she was a young human babe and not a vampire.

"It's not you this time," Siobhan spoke up, which definitely caught Maggie's attention, as those words rarely left Siobhan's lips. Turning her entire chair around to face the two older vampires, Maggie cocked her head in curiosity. There was a brief pause, as Siobhan and Liam seemed to struggle with whatever truth they had come across, but Siobhan continued with a heavy sigh. "It's the Cullens. They've moved recently."

"And?" Maggie pressed, needing to hear the news. What? She never denied that she was a bit nosy. What was wrong that after so many years on the Earth, Maggie wanted to hear whatever gossip she could get her ears on? She had to keep her life exciting, which was pretty hard with two overprotective coven mates and a dull repetitive routine.

"The place they used to live in is called Forks, Washington. It's an old favorite place of theirs that they had settled in quite a few times over the years. As their friends, we know how long they tend to stay there before moving on. Not only did they leave much sooner than usual, but there is quite a bit of mystery as to why they left," Siobhan explained. "We're worried as to why they left, and what they might have left behind."

"You think they're hiding something," Maggie said, a little surprised at the thought. The Cullens had always been such goody two shoes, to the point where they never needed to hide anything. Maggie knew this, of course, as in all the time Maggie had spent around them, they had rarely lied, and even then, they had only done so for stupid reasons.

"Yes," Liam admitted, looking like it truly pained him to think such things about close friends.

"They won't talk to us about why they left, and suddenly changed their minds about staying with us for awhile when we asked questions as to their sudden departure." Siobhan gave Maggie a knowing look, and Maggie nodded in understanding. Spending even a few days in close quarters with their coven meant that the Cullens would only be able to avoid Siobhan and Liam's questions so much. And with Maggie around, any lie they told would immediately be called out.

"Sooooo," Maggie said as she kicked her legs, waiting to see where exactly they were going with this. They weren't going to suggest their coven hunt the Cullens down and demand answers, were they? That would definitely damage their friendship, not to mention the trouble their own coven was facing at the moment.

"We hate to do this, but we see no other choice. With the uprising a few young vampires are trying with us, Liam and I can't leave. But at the same time, if the Cullens left something that needs to be dealt with behind, they could be putting their entire coven, if not more vampires, in danger."

No way. There's no way that Siobhan was saying what Maggie thought she was saying. Holding her breath, Maggie stared wide eyed at her leader, trying not to show her excitement in case Maggie was wrong or Siobhan changed her mind.

"We need you to go down to Forks and figure out what made them run," Siobhan continued, clearly not happy to be saying this. "You would have the easiest time doing so, and if whatever it is that the Cullens left is dangerous, it might be best for you to take care of it."

That was another side to Maggie's gift. Being able to tell whenever someone was lying taught Maggie just how far the truth could be bent, and how to make even the most crazy of lies look like the truth. Which meant that whatever the Cullens did or didn't do wouldn't matter, as Maggie could make it look like nothing had ever even needed taking care of.

"So I get to go alone," Maggie said, her voice slow, testing the idea out. A part of her thought this was some strange trick or hallucination, as Maggie never could have imagined the day her over protective coven mates would even consider letting her walk into danger. But both Liam and Siobhan nodded, albeit reluctantly, and Maggie knew it was actually happening.

"Alright!" Maggie cried as she jumped out of her chair, making her wild red curls bounce up and down. "I'll be leavin' immediately to take care of the threat, and I'll be back...well, whenever I'll be back."

Siobhan gave Maggie a hard look. "And you _will_ be keeping in touch. Daily. Understood?"

"Gotcha," Maggie said, trying not to roll her eyes at her coven mate's protectiveness. She quickly perked up with a grin. "Can I go now?"

Siobhan and Liam exchanged a look that could have held a year's worth of conversation between them, then both turned back to Maggie and nodded.

"You may go," Siobhan said, holding out a cell phone, wallet, and papers needed for Maggie to fly to America.

Maggie squealed in excitement, hopping up and down and clapping her hands. This was the trip of a century for her after all, who wouldn't be excited?

Before either Siobhan or Liam could change their mind, Maggie snatched the phone, wallet, and papers out of Siobhan's hand and sped out the door. She didn't stop to consider taking a car, or even clothes; she could get all of that in America, after all. And a part of her was still sure this was some kind of dream or trick, and if Maggie didn't get to the airport quickly enough, Siobhan might call her back, telling her they changed their mind.

It didn't take Maggie long to run to the airport after a quick hunt to quench her thirst, and it was from there that she found herself frustrated beyond belief. Upon checking in to get her boarding pass, the woman behind the desk wouldn't stop looking at her skeptically, as if unable to believe that a teenager like Maggie was flying alone, and without any bags no less. But there was nothing the woman could do to stop Maggie from flying, so she handed over the boarding ticket and told her where to go. Although this only happened after Maggie insisted several times she didn't need someone to escort her and could do everything by herself.

"For the love of all that is bloody, who did that woman think I am?" Maggie muttered to herself as she stalked towards the security line. "She didn't take me seriously for a heartbeat. If Siobhan and Liam had been with me, she wouldn't have given us any trouble, that's for sure. Shite!" Of course, one of the reasons Maggie had been so excited was because Liam and Siobhan weren't with her. She should buck up and prove to them, even if they weren't there, that she could handle anything that came at her without getting all pissy.

The long security line didn't help, and Maggie started to growl in frustration under her breath. For a vampire who had lived for so long, many would think that infinite patience would have been developed. They would have been dead wrong; at least in Maggie's case.

Finally, Maggie made it through security with a simple pat down instead of having to go through the metal detector, and Maggie rushed to her gate at the fastest human speed she could manage. She arrived in plenty of time, and as the whole world didn't revolve around her own arrival, she then had to suffer through even more boredom as she had to wait to board.

This whole lone traveler thing was already starting to wear on Maggie, mostly due to all the looks she was getting, and she didn't like it. This was supposed to be fun! One grand old adventure. And Maggie was definitely going to make sure it stayed that way, no matter how bored she might feel.

Eventually, it became time to board, and Maggie was one of the first people on the plane, thanks to her ticket and her own stubbornness to not be stuck in line all over again. Once seated, she let out a sigh and stared towards the front of the aircraft, as if she could quicken the boarding process by will alone.

As she waited, she remembered to send a text off to Siobhan, stating that she was on the plane and all was well. She didn't even try to add a small teasing message, as she knew how hard it was to catch teasing over text, and she didn't want Siobhan and Liam rushing over in a panic to snatch her right off the plane.

Maggie didn't pay much attention to the man who ended up seated next to her. Of course, that didn't mean she didn't notice him taking stock of her, a disgusting leer in his eyes.

"I'm underage, ya perv," Maggie said, loudly enough for not just him to hear, but everyone nearby as well. The entire time, she didn't take her eyes off of the window, waiting for the plane to take off. She didn't look up, even when there was a commotion, even when she heard the flight attendant tell the man next to her that he had to move due to complaints, and she didn't look up when the man started to protest, saying that he wasn't looking at Maggie in any sexual way, the lies he was spewing causing Maggie's gift to go crazy.

"I'm so sorry about that, Miss," a flight attendant spoke up, sounding apologetic and disgusted. Not at Maggie, of course, but at the man who was currently being moved.

Maggie turned to face the woman, flashing her best smile, which effectively dazzled the woman. "No problem. I just have a problem with staying silent at times."

"You...you should never stay silent about those kinds of things," the flight attendant managed to say after the brief, awkward pause that the attendant had taken to collect herself. "If you need anything, don't hesitate to tell one of us."

"Thanks," Maggie said with a nod, and with that, the flight attendant left Maggie to her own devices. Another person, this time a business woman, came over and ended up sitting next to her. Maggie was content with continuing to stare out the window, willing the plane to hurry up and take off already, but the woman had other plans.

"I heard what happened," the woman said. Maggie felt her start to reach out to touch her, but then the human pulled back, probably sensing that Maggie wasn't someone a human wanted to get close to. Or perhaps just realizing how weird it was to touch a stranger who wasn't even looking in her direction. "I'm really sorry you had to put up with that."

The cursed manners Siobhan and Liam had drilled into her over the centuries had Maggie turning to face the woman, albeit reluctantly. "No problem, I've dealt with worse. Besides, the man was dealt with, yeah?"

Maggie's manners served to encourage the woman. "Well, yes and no. He was only forced to switch seats with me. Honestly, I think he should have been thrown off this flight for the way he behaved."

Honestly, Maggie thought that might be a little much. All he did was give her a disgusting look, then lie about it. However, humans and their ways were strange, so Maggie just gave a small, polite smile and nodded.

Despite trying to make it clear that she wasn't in the mood for small talk, the eensy bits of politeness that Maggie felt forced to show seemed to only serve in continuing to encourage the woman more and more. For a few minutes, the woman continued to talk about how messed up the man was for looking at a clearly underage girl-which Maggie took offence to, as she may look a little young, but she damn well was older than everyone on the plane by far and she was definitely hot enough to at least smudge the idea of her being underage to humans-and when she ran out of things to say about that, she then tried to move to more small talk.

"So, I'm Barbara. What's your name?"

Resisting the urge to tell the woman to fuck off and leave her alone, or even give her a stupid name like Ember Buttkiss, Maggie said, "Maggie."

"And what are you doing flying all by yourself?"

 _None of your beeswax, you warty little…_ Maggie started a mini rant in her head, only for Siobhan's voice to remind her, once again, about manners. Usually Maggie would have better control about getting all grumpy, but she was impatient and wanted to get a move on already. Not only was the wait killing her, but so was her own curiosity and excitement. She just couldn't stop wondering about what the Cullens might be hiding.

"Visiting family," Maggie answered, wondering how many more questions the woman could possibly have stored in her tiny brain.

Barbara opened her mouth, clearly about to ask her to elaborate or something, only for a ding to echo through the airplane. The pilot started speaking as the plane got ready for takeoff, and Maggie let out a breath of relief. Thank the gods!

Sadly, Barbara wasn't done with her, and the pilot speaking only delayed her for a few moments before the woman started to speak again.

"Family in the states? Do you know them well?"

Oh, bloody hell...why couldn't a grown woman realize that it might be best to leave a teenage looking girl like Maggie alone?

"Yes," Maggie answered, barely able to stay polite, and pointedly looked away, out the window.

Of course, the woman still wouldn't take the hint, and had Maggie not been surrounded by so many witnesses, she would have bit and drained the woman just to shut her up.

Instead, as the plane took flight, Maggie had no choice but to endure the torture. To make matters worse, unlike the other humans, the woman never fell asleep.


	2. Chapter 2

_Author's Note: And here's chapter 2, as I know chapter 1 didn't get very far. Maybe this will make it feel like the story is actually interesting._

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Chapter 2

Maggie felt as exhausted as a vampire could ever feel when she got off that plane. And when she felt the woman watching her, as if about to escort Maggie out of the airport herself, Maggie rushed at a quick human speed as soon as possible, thankfully losing the annoying human in only a few minutes, plenty of time to change directions and make her connecting flight that would bring her a lot closer to Forks.

Unlike her last flight, this one was trouble free, and Maggie got to enjoy relative quiet as she stared out of the window. She was only spoken to once, and that was to ask if she wanted anything to eat or drink, and all Maggie did was have to decline, and that was it.

Why couldn't all planes be like this?

The second the plane landed and Maggie was released, she bounced out of the gate in excitement, to the point a few people were giving her strange looks. She didn't care, of course, and Maggie kept on grinning.

She was only a bit of a run from Forks, and then Maggie would start her mission. Her mission to...hm...she needed a cool name for this, didn't she? It was boring to just say she needed to find why the Cullens left. Operation: Uncover the Cullens' Secret. Eh, it wasn't her best mission name...she would probably have to come up with something better later.

Too eager to get started, Maggie didn't even bother with trying to rent or steal a car. Instead, she just headed out of the airport and walked at a normal human pace until she could find a secluded place with no humans or cameras, then took off running at full vampire speed to where she knew Forks was. As she ran, she hummed the Mission Impossible theme song to herself, which only served in getting her more hyped up.

It wasn't long until she passed the sign that said "Welcome to Forks" and Maggie did an excited little jump and fist pump as she ran. Then she realized it had been a long time since she had last contacted Siobhan and Liam. She paused deep in a forest as she checked her phone, only to get a surprise that she didn't have any missed calls or texts.

Could it be? Could Siobhan and Liam have finally realized that they should stop treating her like a baby?

Nah, that was impossible. They must have figured that she was still on the plane and that all texts and calls wouldn't reach her.

Maggie sent both of them a quick text to tell them she had landed and all was good.

Immediately, she got two replies, both asking the exact thing; _Have you fed?_ This was quickly followed by another text, both also saying basically the same thing. Liam's said _Are you absolutely sure you're safe?_ While Siobhan's said _You're sure you're safe? Are you staying aware of your surroundings?_

Geez, it was like they hadn't even spoken a word to each other before answering the text. Maggie knew they were together too, so they had to have heard that they had both gotten a text from her, but Maggie's guess was that they had been too worried about her to wait.

 _Yeah, I fed, stop your worrying. And of course I'm keeping a sharp eye out for anything weird, you two trained me, remember?_ Maggie texted to both of them, then added another text, which she also sent to both saying _And how about you consult each other before you reply? You two asked me the exact same thing both times._

 _We worry about you_ was the reply she got from both of them. Then Siobhan added, _I don't like you being by yourself more than necessary. If you're attacked, we're too far away to help you._

Maggie rolled her eyes, but also couldn't help but smile at the thought of her overprotective covenmates. _I'm fine. And I'm about to start the investigation so I'm not gonna answer texts for awhile. Don't freak out._ After sending that text to Siobhan alone, Maggie let out a noise that was a mix of sigh and giggle as her phone buzzed with a response immediately.

"Nope, sorry," Maggie said out loud. "But you two are the ones who gave me the mission, and I won't be gettin' anything done if I'm too busy texting you for the next few years tellin' you I'm still fine." With that, she pocketed her phone and started to run again, deciding to head to the Cullen mansion first. It was as good of a place to start as any, right?

She arrived there quickly enough, having been to the mansion once a long time ago. She checked the perimeter first, surprised not by the fact that it had clearly been abandoned for awhile, but by the fact that it was still untouched. She had figured that at least a vandal or two would have broken in and maybe taken something, or at least spray painted the place. Either nobody knew the mansion was here, or this town was filled with those goody two shoe youths who didn't want to risk stepping out of line.

Speaking of goody two shoes and vandals…

"Oops," Maggie said for nobody's benefit in particular as she grabbed the door handle and turned with enough force to snap the lock. She didn't have time, not to mention the patience, to check to see if they had left a spare key anywhere.

The door swung open and Maggie stepped inside, looking around the house with raised eyebrows. If it weren't for the layer of dust coating everything, anyone looking would have thought the Cullens had simply gone on a family outing and would be back any minute. Really, they must have left in one hell of a hurry, as it appeared they had left everything behind, and the electricity was even still working, something Maggie took note of as she turned on a nearby light before turning it off again. Even Emmett's playstation had been left behind. Well, Maggie's playstation now...at least for the duration of her stay. Because while Maggie was as honest as anyone could come to the point she was considered to have no brain to mouth filter, Maggie was still one to take advantage of any situation she found herself in. And an abandoned playstation was definitely a moment of opportunity Maggie couldn't pass up.

For a moment, Maggie considered pausing in her investigation to play on it for awhile, but thought better of it. She'd have plenty of time for that later, but for now, she had better search the house.

As it turns out, searching someone's house wasn't as nearly as exciting as cop TV shows made it look. Maggie had to scour each room, taking in every detail, making sure she didn't miss anything that could be evidence to whatever the Cullens could have been hiding or running from. It was extremely boring, with the best part being looking in each of the Cullens' closets and checking out their lingerie. Rosalie's was all sexy, of course, Edward's all boring and plain white, Emmett had some variety of boxers, Jasper was also an underwear type of guy, but a lot more adventurous than Edward, Alice had a mix of cute and sexy, Carlisle's underwear was nearly as boring as Edward's, and...ooh, Mrs. Cullen, aren't you a surprise? Maggie would never have thought that Esme could be any more exciting than Carlisle, but it seemed like she liked to take some risks with some of her underwear choices...and was that a whip?

Taking the whip out, Maggie practiced cracking it a few times, then returned it to the drawer with a giggle. Who would've thought the angelic mother could have such an interesting sex life? At least, that better be what that whip was used for.

With that done, Maggie fell back into boredom, and soon was finished scouring every inch of the house, and had come up empty handed, without a single clue as to why they had left. Also, the only thing the Cullens had taken with them were their computers, which made Maggie grumpy. The shows always made it clear that the computers were where you were most likely to find something incriminating.

"Now what?" Maggie grumbled out loud as she finally took out her phone to text a quick update to Siobhan and Liam, telling them that she was still fine and hadn't found anything about why the Cullens had left yet. She then checked the reply, rolled her eyes as she found Siobhan and Liam both told her to keep looking but to be careful and keep them updated, then pocketed her phone once more. As she tried to figure out how to continue her search, her gaze wandered to the playstation. Perhaps she should play a few rounds, loosen up her brain…

No! If Maggie gave in now, who knows how many days she'd end up playing for? She needed to at least find some lead, or else Siobhan and Liam might decide that one of them should do the job instead of her.

Reluctantly turning her back on the playstation, Maggie once again fell into deep thought. What was she supposed to do next?

Wait, in the cop shows, what did they do when they needed to find more information about something that had happened? They talked to witnesses, that's it! It was time for Maggie to go into Forks itself and start talking to people. But she'd have to be sneaky about it, sly. And since she was crap at lying, Maggie would just have to tell the truth in the most twisted way she could.

And Maggie would need to buy some kind of clothes along the way. Maybe she should have thought to pack a few outfits before running out of her house. Or…

This time, her gaze moved back upstairs instead of towards the playstation.

Alice and Maggie were about the same size, after all, and Alice's closet was absolutely huge, pretty much the size of Alice's room. Why go shopping when Maggie had so many outfits at her fingertips? It wasn't like Alice would mind, with how much she tried to dress up everyone around her.

Grinning to herself and bouncing in excitement, Maggie ran back upstairs to pull out a bunch of different clothes and set up a few outfits. She changed once, happy to get out of her clothes that stank of human sweat, and then happily posed in front of the mirror in a white shirt, black jacket, and black slacks. Damn, did Maggie look good! Not to mention, she definitely looked like a plain clothes detective, although she knew nobody would actually think she was one. Looking the part was definitely a necessary part of the mission, no matter how much Siobhan would roll her eyes if she had been told what Maggie knew to be true.

After a few more poses, Maggie once again headed back downstairs and out the front door. Maybe she should have gotten a car after all; it would make her look a lot less suspicious at least. But since she hadn't, she would just have to borrow one of the Cullen cars instead. While they did stand out, Maggie would just say that she's a family friend of the Cullens and staying at their house. No lie there, and she knew upon hearing that, most people would just assume that they had let her use the cars.

Of course Rosalie's car was gone, as there was no way she'd part with her baby, and Carlisle's car was gone too. Maggie was too tiny for Emmett's jeep, so seeing no choice, Maggie had to take Edward's silver volvo.

Running into the garage, Maggie got the proper tools that would allow her to pick the lock of the Volvo, then she got inside and got to work on hotwiring it. And no, Siobhan and Liam had no idea that she knew how to do either of those things, and Maggie would prefer it be kept that way.

Once everything was all nice and dandy, Maggie put the car into drive and started heading towards Forks. Only to realize how small the town was and how many people were looking at the car, so she parked in a secluded area, got out, and decided to start trying to find people to talk to on foot.

While everywhere she went people stared, and seemed dazed by her accent, not one person looked at her in suspicion. To top it off, they were all incredibly friendly, open, and honest to the point even Maggie found it ridiculous. Really, her gift didn't go off even once, which meant not a single person even told a single white lie about anything. Shouldn't they be a little more guarded?

At first, Maggie focused on stores, knowing there would be more people inside. A lot of people seemed confused as to why she was asking about the Cullens, until she explained she knew them and was now living at their house, but that they never told her why they left. And apparently every person she asked didn't know why they had left either. Not a single person knew a thing, and it was making Maggie incredibly frustrated. That is, until Maggie thought to change up her question while in the middle of a conversation with a high school aged blonde boy who looked like a puppy. He had been grumbling about how stupid Edward was, seeming to hate the guy personally, and it was enough to give Maggie an idea. Instead of just asking if he knew why the Cullens had left, Maggie also asked if any of the Cullens might have left something behind.

She got an answer immediately. It appeared that the Cullens had left behind a girl named Bella Swan.


	3. Chapter 3

_Author's Note: Just wanted to say, I am so sorry this wasn't posted sooner. I actually had finished it weeks ago, but completely forgot about posting it. For anyone who's reading it, I swear I haven't died or whatever, and want to thank everyone for the amazing support I've been getting. I swear I'm trying to update everything else, and have actually spent a lot of time just staring at each of my stories, trying to finish a chapter. I just have to admit that I'm experiencing the biggest writing block of my life, and it's killing me. If anyone thinks they can help, feel free to PM me, especially if you have funny stories to tell me as for some reason, they help me out the most. Thanks for reading, and thanks in advance to all who might help me. Now, on to the story._

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Chapter 3

After showing interest in what Mike was talking about, the boy quickly spilled all of his information regarding Bella and the Cullens' relationship. How Bella had moved to Forks to live with her police chief father, how she and Edward had started dating pretty quickly, despite the fact that Mike had started talking to her first and was much nicer to her than Edward had been. Which rang true to Maggie, but it was a bit hard sometimes for her gift to say what was actually the truth, and what the person who spoke believed to be the truth. But Maggie actually felt like believing the boy, because Edward could always be more than a little grumpy.

Mike then went on to talk about how much the Cullens leaving had fucked Bella up, especially since right before they left, Bella basically spent all of her time with at least Edward or Alice glued to her side. Since Maggie kept on encouraging him as she realized what had actually happened, he then went into way more detail about Bella then necessary, at which point, Maggie bluntly interrupted him mid-sentence and said she was leaving.

As she walked away, she couldn't help but feel a swell of disbelief. It couldn't be true, could it? But Mike's play by play of Bella and the Cullens' actions sure seemed to make it seem that way. And letting a human get close like that...a human would have to be incredibly stupid not to realize that the Cullens weren't human themselves if one spent so much time around them day in and day out, especially if said human was dating one of them.

"Damn it, Edward," Maggie muttered under her breath. "You didn't so much look at a girl in all your years to the point I had a running bet with Emmett and Alice on whether you were gay or not, and then you go and fuck everything up, not just by revealing that you weren't and making me lose, but by going for a human of all things? You know what? Fuck you and all of the Cullens anyways, if you left her behind knowing the truth. Of course, if this is the truth, then you all will have a lot of explaining to do when Siobhan and Liam get their hands wrapped around your scrawny necks."

Maggie started to take out her phone, then paused before texting Siobhan and Liam. She should be sure first, and should meet this Bella girl in person. Better to do that then to condemn the girl to death right off the bat. Maggie would hate to kill a human unnecessarily, especially if the Cullens were fond of her. Besides, Maggie would only have to talk to this Bella Swan for a few moments before she would find out the truth. How much harm could a visit from a vampire as cute as her cause if she were to be seen going into the house, anyways?

Without another thought or worry, Maggie all but skipped back to her borrowed car and got in, then drove to where Bella Swan lived. And yes, that Mike boy did tell her, Maggie was actually a little worried about the human having a stalker. Well, not worried, just curious, as the human was only her problem if Bella knew about vampires.

Maggie parked in the driveway, noting the only car was a cheap old truck that looked ready to fall apart any second, and that there was also only the sound of one heartbeat inside. The father must be at work. Damn, would you look at that, things were working out in Maggie's favor already.

Knowing the sooner she got inside the better, Maggie quickly exited the car, locked it, and flitted over to Bella's front door to ring the doorbell. Hearing no other noises besides the heartbeat, for instance the sound of a human moving towards the front door, Maggie rang the doorbell again.

This time, Bella reacted to the noise, and Maggie could hear the human's feet hit the floor before she started making her way down the stairs, towards the front door. The girl walked slowly, and Maggie felt herself getting more and more annoyed and frustrated. Gods, she knew humans were slow, but Maggie had never known that a human could be _that_ slow.

By the time Bella made it to the door, Maggie was ready to kick it down. But then the door opened, and any annoyed feelings Maggie might have harbored for the human immediately disappeared. How could she be annoyed or angry at the most gorgeous girl in the world, after all? She'd have to be mad in the head.

"Oh, um...hi," Bella said, her eyes widening as she realized she was staring at crimson irises, and that those irises belonged to an inhumanly beautiful girl. This was a vampire, and this vampire was clearly a human drinker. But for some reason, Bella wasn't afraid. Was that because of the silly, open mouthed expression on the girl's face?

Realizing that her dumb yet lovestruck expression was still on her face, Maggie forced her mouth to close and stuck out her hand, turning on the Irish charm. "Hello, Bella right? You're just as beautiful as that boy told me you would be. I'm Maggie, and I'd like to talk to you for a bit. Privately, of course." Despite her charming demeanor, Maggie was still freaking out inside. Who would have thought she'd find her mate here, of all places? While trying to figure out what the Cullens might have been doing, after all.

The Cullens...Edward...Edward's supposed relationship with the human.

Curse him to all seven hells. If Edward's story wasn't to Maggie's liking, she'd have to take a few chunks out of his flesh at the very least.

Just as the dark thought crossed Maggie's mind, Maggie realized just how tired and haggard the beauty before her look. Her thoughts took a darker turn as she wondered if Edward was the cause.

Bella hesitated, unsure of what to do. Letting a red eyed vampire into her house seemed like a stupid move any way she looked at it, but it wasn't like the vampire couldn't kill her without any effort anyways. And it had been so long since she had seen a vampire...Bella craved contact with one, any way she could get it.

Seeing the unsure worry on Bella's face, Maggie gave her best puppy dog look, trying to seem as adorable and irresistible as possible. Bella actually blushed at that, which made Maggie feel elated and more than a little smug, and then she stepped aside, clearly letting Maggie into her house.

Unable to restrain herself, Maggie gave Bella a huge grin. "Oh, thank you! I was so afraid that you were scared to let me in!" she exclaimed suddenly, throwing her arms around Bella. The human stiffened, and that was what it took for Maggie to realize what she was doing and freeze. Suddenly self conscious, Maggie quickly let go and backtracked, albeit into Bella's house instead of back onto the porch. "Sorry, I didn't mean-I can't help it. You're too damn huggable." Gaining her confidence back, Maggie flashed another charming grin. "If you ever want another, feel free to ask. I'll give you as many hugs as you want." _Hugs and more, whatever you desire, you amazing, sexy woman,_ Maggie couldn't help but add silently. Her thoughts must have projected through her eyes or something, because Bella seemed to become nervous, looking away. And damn it, when Maggie didn't think the human could get any sexier, Bella bit her lip.

Oh, what Maggie would do to bite that lip for her...stop it, Maggie, clean thoughts! For now, at least.

Still, it was hard for Maggie to believe that she had found her mate in such a beautiful human in America of all places, so long after she had been turned. And that if it weren't for the Cullens being all suspicious, she might never have met Bella in the first place. Fate was a fickle broad, that was for sure.

"Um, if you still want to talk…" Bella started awkwardly, unsure of how to act with the way Maggie was staring at her. "Maybe we should go up to my bedroom?" She had no idea why this red eyed vampire was here, and if this talk was going to take long, she'd hate for Charlie to walk in.

"I'd love to, beautiful," Maggie replied excitedly, pushing away the image of Bella lying on a bed with the door closed, Maggie on top of her. What could she say? Finding her mate so soon, especially said mate being human, pushed Maggie's instincts to the surface. She wanted to stay with the girl, and in order to soothe herself meant Maggie craved a lot of contact. Preferably skin to skin, all over.

"Right," Bella mumbled, ducking her head and blushing a bright, attractive red. Not knowing what to say with all of the random comments her guest was giving her, Bella simply led the way up the stairs without a word.

Maggie followed happily, fighting the urge to hum, her eyes glued to the sway of Bella's hips. She was so fixated, in fact, she didn't realize that they were in Bella's room until Maggie noticed Bella had started to turn.

Immediately, Maggie's eyes darted to Bella's face, putting on the most innocent expression she could muster. Thankfully, Bella didn't seem to notice Maggie's ogling; she didn't want to make Bella uncomfortable, after all. Well, any more uncomfortable than Bella clearly already was. While Maggie wanted to help soothe Bella's nerves, she had no idea how, not when Maggie was a near stranger who came here in the first place to investigate the girl.

"Take a seat wherever you want," Bella said after an uncomfortable silence where the two girls had simply stood facing each other and staring. Bella then sat first, on her bed, and was about to turn to face Maggie, only to be surprised by Maggie flopping onto the bed next to her with a laugh. Bella froze, having no idea what to do, especially with a strange vampire so close, their sides actually touching. Despite Maggie being a stranger, Bella still had to fight the urge to lean against the smaller girl. It had just been so long since she had felt that familiar coldness, it was like she had been in the worst kind of withdrawal and had suddenly been given the drug she needed so badly.

"Hope you don't mind," Maggie said with a grin, sensing Bella's turmoil. Of course, if Bella did mind, it would definitely hurt, but she couldn't exactly push herself completely on Bella, after all. When it came to personal space, Maggie felt like strangers had better stay away, and those she cared about she could climb all over. But apparently, many people had different views about personal space than she did, and it wasn't as if Bella knew who she was to Maggie in the first place.

"N-no, I don't," Bella said, getting nearly dazzled by Maggie's smile before she looked away. "So, sorry to be abrupt, but I need to ask...why exactly are you here to see me?"

"Right," Maggie's lips turned down in a frown as she wondered about where to start. She couldn't exactly blurt out, "The Cullens fucked up so I came to take care of the problem but it turns out you're my mate and I love you." Well, Maggie supposed she could, but she doubted it would exactly go over well with her human.

As Maggie continued to think about how to start, Bella couldn't help but stare at the gorgeous teen. Despite her clearly youthful appearance that made her look a little younger than Bella, Maggie's appearance rivaled Rosalie's. And there was something about Maggie's red eyes that was alluring to Bella in a way that even Edward's weren't, which probably had to do with the fact that Maggie was a human hunter and needed that extra ability. Which was a little funny. Not that Maggie was a human hunter or anything, but the fact that one of the vampires who drank from people like her all the time so far seemed to show no signs of discomfort being around Bella's supposedly deliciously smelling blood since Bella laid eyes on her.

Despite how deep in thought Maggie was, she of course felt Bella's eyes on her, and it made it hard for Maggie to concentrate. The intensity of Bella's examination made Maggie want to just turn her head and kiss the girl senseless. That wasn't Maggie's fault, though! Anybody who was looked at like that by their mate would have them pinned, kissing their face off, within seconds. Which Bella had better be prepared for once Bella knew and accepted their mating. And no, Maggie wasn't worried about being accepted. Nobody could resist Maggie on a regular basis, she was just that damn charming, but with the mating bond? Bella had no chance, not in the long run.

Hopefully not too long, though...Maggie still wasn't good with the whole patience thing. Although Maggie was willing to wait as long as possible for Bella, that didn't mean Maggie wouldn't explode first.

"Maggie?" Bella asked hesitantly after a few more minutes of silence passed.

"Right," Maggie said with a sigh, knowing she had to start the conversation somewhere, and now. Maggie would have been shaking whoever had made her wait so long, so why should she expect someone, her mate no less, to do the same? So, turning to Bella, Maggie started with what she believed was the best place in her explanation. "I'm a friend of the Cullens-"

That's it. That's as far as she got. Then Maggie got the closest thing to a heart attack that a vampire could get as Bella burst into tears.


End file.
